Retail establishments continously seek means for increasing traffic through a store. A promotional game will frequently be utilized and has for its purpose increased consumer awareness of a retail establishment while simultaneously indirectly increasing the purchases which a consumer makes in the store because of being attracted into the store by the promotional game. A promotional game must be relatively inexpensive to implement in order to permit mass distribution of the promotional game coupons so as to contact the greatest number of potential consumers. Consequently, the cost for producing the coupons must be very low in order to minimize the overhead costs associated with the game.
Promotional games, particularly those which are widely distributed through mass distributions, present the possibility of fraud by an individual capable of duplicating the coupons. Should an individual, particularly an employee of the retail establishment, be able to sort the large prize coupons from those with a less substantial prize reward, then the possibilities of fraud are most evident. While many retail establishments prohibit their employees from participating in the promotional games, this prohibition alone is not satisfactory
The retail establishment utilizing a promotional game will obtain maximum benefit from the game if accurate records and accountings are maintained. These records and accountings should permit the retail establishment to keep records of which stores have most benefited from the promotional coupons, which stores and even which employees have received the most prize awarding coupons, during which hours are the coupons most utilized, as well as much additional information which may be readily appreciated by one skilled in the promotional game art.
Many retail establishments, particularly supermarkets, have recently begun to install equipment capable of scanning the Uniform Product Code (UPC ) printed on many articles. This scanning equipment permits the retailer to scan the coded bars on the product and to interpret those bars so as to maintain accurate control of inventory and to provide greatly enhanced accounting records. The ordinary consumer is incapable of interpreting the information coded by the UPC. Consequently, UPC coding, when utilized in combination with a promotional game coupon, permits accurate accounting while preventing an employee or a consumer from sorting through the coupons.
Goodell, No. 700,761, (now abandoned) discloses multilayer railway ticket having means to prevent a consumer from reading the ticket prior to its being accepted. Goodell discloses an opaque strip of dyed paper which covers the destination and which prevents the destination from being read until the dyed strip is removed. Perforations are disposed within the ticket defining a tongue which cooperates with the dyeing strip so that the perforations must be torn in order to remove the dyeing strip and therefore serves to indicate to the conductor or ticket taker that the ticket has been previously opened in violation of the terms of the ticket. The Goodell ticket is a rather complicated structure which is expensive to manufacture and is therefore not suitable for use in a retail establishment promotional game.
Wilson, No. 3,211,470, discloses a coated coupon employing UPC coding. The UPC coding of Wilson is, however, disposed so as to be readily visible with the effect that it may be scanned in advance, thereby permitting employee fraud.
Jacobstein, et al, No. 3,180,808, discloses a chance ticket having a flexible tab retained by a tongue in a closed position. The prize is disposed beneath the tab and lifting of the tab breaks the tongue and permits the prize to be known. Jacobstein, et al, does not, however, utilize UPC coding.
Bachman, No. 4,241,942, discloses a secure contest card having an intermediate layer disposed between two outer layers. Various patterns are printed on the intermediate layer to defeat techniques and equipment capable of compromising the game. Bachman discloses an opaque mask which is disposed over the intermediate layer and which is readily removable by means of a coin or the like. The ticket of Bachman is, however, difficult to manufacture and provides no guidance in utilizing UPC coding in a promotional game.